male kittens nursing from each other - Paw Talk

halfwaynowhere · #1 05-28-2007, 11:09 PM

In January we rescued 3 kittens (all boys) that were about 2 weeks old, and bottle fed them. Homer kept sucking on his brothers, which i know is dangerous, so we seperated him for a few days, and he grew out of it. They are now 16-18 weeks, I lost count. My sister moved out a few weeks ago and took them with to continue to foster, one has been adopted. I was over there today for a memorial day barbeque, and when we all settled down to watch TV, Homer started suckling on his brother again. He's too old for that! I know its a comforting thing, but its bad for them! I took him away, and my sister says that if she notices it again, she'll seperate them. I'm sure he's been doing it more often, though. My sister even mentioned that Juneau's genitals had been looking kind of funny lately. The cats have their own bedroom, so its not like they are monitored 24/7. I wanted to take Homer back home with me, to keep him away, at least for a few days, in hopes of breaking him of that habit, but my sister thinks I have ulterior motives, and I have to admit, I do. I love Homer, and would love to keep him if he doesn't get adopted soon. He gets along great with Radar and Daphne, and Rosie has decided to be my dad's cat, not mine. I'm moving soon and don't want Radar to be the only cat, and Homer already fits in. But I don't have to keep him, I just want him to be healthy. ingesting his brothers urine is going to make him sick. Anyways, at this point, he's still with my sister, and as far as I can tell, is going to continue suckling on his brother. Any ideas for breaking him of that habit while the two still live together?

kathydip · #2 05-30-2007, 10:32 PM

I thought you meant that he was nursing on his brothers nipples! When Tyler was young he would push another male cat down and force Boo to let him nurse. But he nursed on his nipples - not THAT!
The vet said that my situation was strange but fine. I have to say I don't think that your situation is good for either kitty. I think that maybe separating them for a while may be a good idea.

halfwaynowhere · #3 05-31-2007, 02:49 PM

My sister caught Homer doing it again yesterday, so she is keeping him in the bathroom with another (female) cat to keep him company. My mom agrees with me that it might be better to bring him here, but convincing my sister is not going to be easy.

kathydip · #4 05-31-2007, 06:04 PM

Good luck!

Mousey · #5 06-02-2007, 12:18 AM

Does she know you are looking after the well being of the cat?

halfwaynowhere · #6 06-02-2007, 12:23 AM

yeah. I think he will be fine. Right now the boys are seperated, so at least this behavior will stop. I just figured it would be easier to keep them seperate if they were in different houses, but it seems like they have it pretty well managed over there.
One of the other rescue volunteers told my sister that her and her husband should march in a gay pride parade on behalf of Homer, lol. I think we should put a rainbow collar on him. Its an interesting twist that might help him get adopted. I mean, who wouldn't want a gay cat? lol. I know he's not really gay, he's a cat and all, he's just doing it for comfort, but its still a fun thought.